Seattle Breweries: Take 2

I was lucky enough to attend MozCon on a work trip this summer (#marketinggeek) and arrived a day early– so what did I do? Breweries of course!

Last time I was in Seattle I spent my time at breweries downtown, so this trip I ventured north of Lake Union to check out what was happening on the other side of town. It was a jam-packed afternoon but the breweries were all so close it made sense to do all of them in one trip. If you’re easily exhausted from drinking (like I usually am), it’d be best to split these up between afternoon and evening at least, with dinner in between!

I recommend starting your day with brunch at Thackeray Cafe– a delicious restaurant with cool wooden swings for seating at some tables. There’s also the creepy Fremont Troll nearby if you want to do touristy things. I’m not sure what the hype is about if I’m being honest though…

From there, go to Fremont Brewing. I made a rookie mistake and went to the the Fremont Brewing on 47th Street by all the other breweries and it was a distribution center with no taproom. We had to walk ALL the way back to Fremont Brewing on 34th Street at the end of our circuit. That’s okay though, because we pit-stopped at Giddy Up Burgers for delicious grub and some local beers on the way.

Anyway, once you finish at Fremont you’ll probably want to grab an Uber or else it’s a decent 2 mile walk to the other breweries. We ubered there and walked back… because you can do anything with a little help from alcohol!

In that area, they’re all close enough that you’re really free to go in any order so here’s a quick recap on all of them.

Stoup Brewing

This was my kind of place– industrial taproom with a large garage door connecting the outdoor seating. Perfect for the lovely Seattle weather that afternoon! I got a flight trying some sours, IPA, porter and pale ale (check Untappd) and they were decent. Overall, I’d recommend this place!

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Reuben’s Brews

This was my favorite brewery in the area (but Cloudburst still remains my top Seattle brewery!) with delicious beer and a cool space. It was a bit more crowded than the other breweries, but I still snagged a flight and table outside. They had really good IPAs, especially the 3 Way Beta. Highly recommend!

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Lucky Envelope Brewing

This place had a nice setup with a large outdoor space for cornhole. I wasn’t a huge fan of their beers, but check it out, play a game of cornhole and support a local brewery.

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Populuxe Brewing

This place had an awesome “backyard” (for lack of a better word), with a graveled area for cornhole, a food truck and a couple mural walls. My fave! While the beer didn’t blow my socks off, it was good enough to go back.

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Fremont Brewing

Remember, go to the one by the Troll! You won’t miss it, the place is huge and looks like a tropical paradise. They have beautiful plants lining the walkway and palm tree-esque bushes. There’s quite a few beers on tap and the ones I chose were decent to good. Regardless, it’s a cool place you should check out.

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Outside of this mini-crawl, I also popped into a brewery in the First Hill area one evening. Optimism Brewing Company had a huge space and was packed with a bunch of young professionals. It seemed like a chill place to hang out for the evening. I was in and out quickly since I had to head next door for a networking event, but it’s worth the trip especially if you pop over to the Garage as well. This sweet place had a few bars, bowling lanes, pool tables, outdoor fire pits- plus karaoke at our private event. What more could you ask for?!

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Overall, I’d list my favorites from this trip in the following order:

Reuben’s

Stoup

Fremont

Optimism

Populuxe

Lucky Envelope

Hopefully I can say “check back shortly” for my next post. After an insanely long break (thanks life!), I’m back at it trying to catch up 🙂